Love's A Strange Thing
by The Honorary Weasley
Summary: The story of how James Potter and Lily Evans fell in love, the way I imagine it happened. Enjoy!  Previously called All's Fair in Love and War
1. 1  James and Lily in the Common Room

"Hey, Lily." Called James Potter, as Lily Evans entered the Gryffindor Common Room where he was sitting next to the fire.  
"Go away, James." She replied.  
"Not going to happen!" He said, as she sat down at the table in the corner.  
"Wow, Lily. You must be starting to like me if you voluntarily choose to spend any length of time in the same room as me. You sure Moony or Padfoot didn't Imperius you into it?" James asked jokingly.  
"Don't be stupid, Potter. Anyway, why do you give each other those ridiculous nicknames? Prongs, Padfoot, Moony and Wormtail. I mean, what are thay supposed to mean?" She asked irritably. It was widely known that James had fallen for Lily, but he wasn't about to explain to her that Remus was a warewolf, and the other three were unregistered Animagi.  
"Uh, they're just things we called each other when were kids, and they've sort of stuck." He said, trying to sound half-convincing.  
"You're utterly rubbish at lying, James. I can tell when you're telling the truth, and when you're not. You're a real open book." She replied as she got out some books from her bag.  
"well, if you're so sure I'm lying, then meybe I should tell you what the really mean." He said sarcastically.  
"Don't bother. Judging by half the stuff you and your friends get up to, I probably don't want to know." She replied. "Now, if you're planning on making a lot of noise in here like you usually do, then go do it somewhere else. I've got to study for my N.E., and I suggest that you should do the same."  
"Ugh. I'll pass on the studying. I got through my O. alright, and I spent all of ten minutes looking over a textbook."  
"You got `acceptable` for pretty much everything, and I think you owe most of that to luck." Replied Lily. "Now will you please give me a bit of peace to study?"  
"OK, Lils. I'm just going to sit over here and read, if that's OK with you." He asked sarcastically.  
"Fine, so long as you keep it down." She replied, as she settled down to read over `an advanced guide to Transfiguration`. All of ten minutes had passed when James got up, and sat down oposite Lily at the table. He looked at her expactantly.  
"What do you want?" She asked irritably.  
"For you to put down that stupid book and talk to me. I've done my ten minutes of studying, like you told me to, and I think I deserve a little attention in return.  
"In case you haven't noticed, Potter, I'm more annoyed with you today than usual. I saw you bullying Severus earlier." She said, putting down her book, and looking at him accusingly.  
"honestly, Lily, I thought you'd forgotten about him. He calls you a mudblood. Not to mention the fact that he, along with his little gang of Slytherins, are Death Eaters in the making." He replied firmly.  
"Severus Snape, a Death Eater? I don't think so." She replied coldly.  
"Lily, have you seen him recently? He's always scribbling in this potions book of his, it's starting to look a little suspicious. His friends were talking about the Drak Arts the other day, and I heard Snape's name mentioned. Also, he's a Slytherin." Finished James, as if Snape being a Slytherin condoned any form of hurt that they could inflict upon him.  
"Severus is never going to be on You-Know-Who's side. And even if he was, that doesn't necessarily give you the right to hurt him." Asked Lily.  
"There's a Wizarding war going on, Lils."  
"So? Does that make it alright to hurt Severus?"  
"All's fair in love and war, Lils. One less Death Eater can't be anything but good." Replied James. Then, Lily gathered up her books, and headed up to her dormitory.  
"Lils? Come back down!" James called after her, but she had slammed her dormitory door shut.  
"No, I won't come down, Potter! And don't call me `Lils`, I don't like you!" She yelled down the stairs. Sirius then entered the Common Room.  
"Have another fight with Lily Evans, Prongs? He asked. "The Fat Lady warned me that there was an argument going on in here, and I heard shouting. I recognised your voice, so I just came on in."  
"Don't take this personally, Padfoot, but I don't want to talk about it. I just want to be on my own." Replied James, flopping down in an armchair in the corner of the room. "And yes, I did have a fight with Lily."  
"Right. I'll leave you to your thoughts, then." Said Sirius as he headed for the stairs to the dormitories. "And what on earth are you doing, Prongs?"  
"Studying for my N.E.." Replied James.  
"Did Lily tell you to?"  
"Meybe."  
"You're pathetic, Prongs." Said Sirius jokingly. "You're like Lily Evans' puppet, you are. If she told you to stick your head in a fire, you'd probably do it if you thought it would get her to like you."  
"Just go, Sirius. I'm studying." He said. It was only when one of the Marauders was really miserable that he called his friends by their names, rather than their nicknames. Sirius had noticed this, and thought he ought to leave James alone if he felt so bad.  
"Right, OK. See you later, James." He said, before heading upstairs to his dormitory. 


	2. 2  Sirius and Lily's conversation

"Lily!" Called someone from behind, as Lily was walking through the grounds of Hogwarts before breakfast.  
"Get lost, Potter." She called back, assuming that it was James who was calling after her. She looked over her shoulder, expecting to see James Potter, but, to her surprise, saw Sirius Black running towards her. "Oh, Sirius! I thought you were James."  
"Yea, that's what I came to talk to you about." Said Sirius. "I heard you and James had an argument last night, and I just wanted to tell you that he's really miserable. He actually read a book last night, what did you say that made him feel depressed enough to do that?" Lily couldn't stop the smile that came to her upon hearing this.  
"I didn't say anything. I saw James hex my friend, Severus, so I told him to stop it, and he came out with all these reasons why it was OK to hurt him, like `there's a war going on, and he's apparently on You-Know-Who's side`, and `he's a Slytherin`. Why should that make any difference?" She said defensively. She was no longer smiling.  
"Well, Slytherin does have a reputation for Dark Wizards." Replied Sirius quietly.  
"Oh, not you too!" She yelled.  
"Lily, I didn't mean it like that. I'm just saying that's one of the reasons why James doesn't like Snape." He said. "Anyway, I didn't come to argue with you about Severus Snape, so could you just please try and sort it out with James? I'm not asking you to apologise, just try and reason with him. He's making us all feel miserable."  
"Fine, if it will make you happy, Moony, I'll talk to James later." She replied.  
"Thanks, Lily. But just so you know, I'm not Moony, Remus is. I'm Padfoot." Sirius said, smiling to himself.  
"Oh, you lot and your ridiculous nicknames!"  
"Meybe you should just stick to James, Sirius, Remus and Peter. Leave the nicknames to the experts." He said laughing at his own joke.  
"Right, I think I'll do that. See you later, Sirius." She said.  
"OK, aand don't forget to talk to James."  
"Don't worry, I won't." She replied, and they set off in opposite directions, Sirius towards the castle, Lily towards The Quiddich pitch. 


	3. 3 James and Lily at the Quidditch Pitch

As Lily entered the massive Quidditch pitch at Hogwarts, she found James sitting alone in the stands, his broom at his feet. "Hey, James!" She called. "Sirius asked me to come talk to you. Says you're making his life a misery!"  
"You should have just told him to get lost." He replied.  
"Well, I didn't. Come down here and talk to me, please. I feel stupid yelling to you when you're sitting all the way up there." She called. James picked up his broom, and flew down to the ground where Lily was standing.  
"Right, I'm here. What do you want?" He said miserably.  
"First, I want you to stop being so bloody miserable, you're making everyone depressed. And second, I want to put our argument behind us and be friends again." She said.  
"So you just want to forget about it. We can be friends? Like we used to be?" He asked, sounding a little less down than he was before.  
"Yes, on one condition." She said. "You and your friends leave Severus alone."  
"So if I leave Snape be, you'll start speaking to me again, and we can be friends?"  
"Yes."  
"Right, OK! From this minute, you'll never hear of me bothering Severus Snape ever again." He replied, smiling for the first time since the argument.  
"OK, then. We're friends." Said Lily. She looked up, and their eyes met. His beautiful hazel eyes gazed into her bright green ones. Lily's heart was beating fast. It was then she realised, after years of turning him down, that she truly liked James. She smiled shyly.  
"You have beautiful eyes, Lils." Whispered James. Their faces were now very close together.  
"I, erm, have to, um, go to the, er, library." Said Lily quickly, turning around and running off. Her heart was now beating faster than ever, and she was so confused.  
"Lils! Come back!" James called after her, but Lily didn't turn around. She ran straight to Gryffindor tower, and found the common room deserted by all except one of her best friends, Charity Burbage.  
"Hello, Lily." Charity greeted Lily. Charity looked up from the book she had been reading, and looked at Lily. "You look a bit shell-shocked."  
"Er, yea, I guess you could say that." Replied Lily, laughing nervously and plopping herself down on the sofa next to Charity.  
"What happened, Lil?" Asked Charity, leaving her book on the arm of the chair so as to give Lily her full attention. "Wait, let me guess; you're shocked because McGonnagall has told you that you're too smart to be in sixth year, and she's moved you up to the seventh?" Charity smiled, indicating that she wasn't being serious.  
"Not McGonnagall, no." Replied Lily. Charity's mouth fell open.  
"So you're in seventh year now, who told you, Proffessor Sprout, Flitwick, probably Slughorn, knowing how much he likes you. Oh, dear Merlin, was it Dumbledore himself?" Charity had a tendency to go into a little world of her own when she had theories running through her head. Now was one of those times, and she didn't even notice Lily shaking her head with a mixture of annoyance and humour.  
"No, Charity." Lily said eventually. "I'm still in sixth year, its nothing like that."  
"Then what is it?" Asked Charity, seemingly returning to planet earth.  
"If I tell you, you have to swear on Merlin that you'll never tell another soul as long as you may live, and even after that." Said Lily, very seriously.  
"How could there be anything after life?" Asked Charity, seeming to completely forget the conversation she was having with Lily. "You live, and then you die. There's nothing after it. Well, except heaven, if you believe in it. Or there's always hell..." Charity seemed to drift off into her own little world again, staring blankly into space with a blank look on her face. Lily waved her hand in front of Charity's face.  
"Ghosts, Charity, that's what I meant, but this conversation isn't meant to be about ghosts or speculating about heaven and hell, this is about what has just happened to me, and it's big." Said Lily impatiently.  
"Oh, right." Said Charity. "Yea, I swear on merlin and all that, what happened?"  
"I had an argument with James Potter last night-"  
"So nothing new, then."  
"And then earlier this morning, I was out in the grounds-"  
"Just like any other Saturday."  
"And I met Sirius Black. You know, James's best buddy, and he told me that James was really down and that I should go talk to him-"  
"I think I see where this is going..."  
"And I went to the Quidditch pitch, and James was there-"  
"Surprise, surprise."  
"And we made up so we're friends again-"  
"Just friends?"  
"And then our eyes sort of met, and it was like seeing things clearly for the first time-"  
"So, what, you fancy him now?"  
"And he said my eyes were beautiful-"  
"He always says that."  
"And I know I've been turning him down for five years straight, but, now I'm thinking, maybe..."  
"What did you say to him?"  
"I didn't say anything, I ran off."  
"Merlin's sake, Lil, you have NO idea how to act around a boy you fancy." Said Charity exasperatedly.  
"That's because the only boy I've ever gone out with is Frank Longbottom." Explained Lily.  
"Ah, big difference between old Frankie and James Potter, isn't there?" Asked Charity, picking up her book and opening it to the page she had been reading before Lily showed up.  
"Yea, bit of a difference." Said Lily, slouching down into the sofa.  
"I hear Benjy Fenwick's been trying to ask you out." Said Charity from behind her book.  
"Bloody hell." Said Lily. Charity and Lily both agreed that Benjy Fenwick was not the sort of person you should be going out with.  
"Oh, Charity?" Said Lily, sitting up straight again.  
"What?" Asked Charity.  
"I know you're friendly with Sybil Trelawney and Bertha Jorkins, but don't tell them about this please." Asked Lily. "Especially not Bertha, she's a bit gossipy."  
"Right you are, Lil." Replied Charity, still not looking up from her book.  
"What the heck are you reading, anyway?" Asked Lily. "Must be bloody interesting, you've had your nose stuck in it for ages."  
"It's called `Home Life and Social Habits of British Muggles`." Replied Charity, looking up and smiling. "It's a very good book."  
"You and your Muggle Studies, Charity." Said Lily, smiling.  
"I don't know why you never took it, Lily, you'd have got Outstanding in everything." Said Charity.  
"There's no point in a Muggle-Born taking Muggle Studies." Said Lily. "I already know everything about how Muggles live, having been brought up by a pair of them and having one for a sister."  
"Still, it's a fantastic subject, and it's good that it's not biased, seeing that it's taught by a Muggle-Born." Said Charity, turning the page in her book.  
"I think I'll go get some breakfast now, I haven't had anything yet." Said Lily, standing up. "You want to come?"  
"Nah, I had breakfast really early this morning." Replied Charity. "But Hestia left for breakfast about five minutes before you got here, she'll probably still be there." Lily smiled, and turned to the door. Hestia was Lily's other best friend, and she was the only one of her friends who ended up having breakfast so late every weekend. She walked quickly down the corridor, and bumped into Nearly Headless Nick in the entrance hall. Literally, bumped into him. Well, walked through him, really.  
"Gracious, Lily Evans, I'm sure you are glad I am a ghost at this moment in time!" Exclaimed Nick.  
"What?" Said Lily, looking up. "Oh, Sir Nicholas, I'm sorry, I didn't see you!"  
"Apparently so, Miss Evans." Replied Sir Nicholas, smiling at Lily, one of the students who he genuinely liked. "Where are we going on this fine morning, may I ask?"  
"Oh, to the Great Hall, for breakfast." Said Lily.  
"Well, then you'd better hurry." Said the ghost of Gryffindor house. "Where have you been all day, Miss Evans? You are one of the few students who arrive reasonably early every Saturday morning, regardless of the fact that you do not have any classes to attend."  
"Well, I've been sort of busy this morning." Replied Lily, laughing to herself.  
"Hmm, I sense that whatever you have been doing is not the sort of thing you would be prepared to share with myself, am I correct?" Asked Sir Nicholas.  
"No, I suppose it's not the sort of thing I'd share with anyone, not just you." Replied Lily.  
"I hate to ask, but I can't help hearing a few things while I'm going about my buisness in the castle." Began Sir Niholas. "And I have heard a few things about you, Miss Evans. I know I'm being terribly nosy, but whatever you've been doing, I don't suppose it involved one Mr James Potter?"  
"It may have done, or it may not have done." Said Lily. "But don't go telling anyone, not even the other ghosts, please?"  
"Certinally, I pride myself on being the sort of person that students can confide in with complete confidence." Said teh ghost proudly.  
"Great, now I'd better get my breakfast." Said Lily. "I'll see you around, Sir Nicholas." She hurried off down the corridor, and entered the great hall. She saw Hestia sitting alone at the Gryffindoe table, and went to sit next to her.  
"Oh, hi Lil." Said Hestia as Lily sat down.  
"Morning, Hest." Said Lily. "Nice day, huh?"  
"Yea, a nice day to take a walk over to the Quidditch pitch, maybe?" Said Hestia, grinning to herself.  
"Sirius told you didn't he?" Asked Lily, who was ready to send a good jinx or two in Sirius's direction the next time she saw him.  
"No, Peter told me." Replied Hestia, helping herself to some toast.  
"How did Pettigrew know where I was?" Asked Lily. "James or Sirius probably told him."  
"Nah, he was at the pitch, too." Explained Hestia. "He was watching Potter practice and saw you there."  
"Oh, Merlin, Peter Pettigrew saw us?" Asked Lily. It was not a very pleasant thought that possibly the most disgusting boy in her year had seen her almost kiss James.  
"What, did you snog him or something? Oh, please, merlin, let them have had a snog!" Said Hestia excitedly, dropping her toast on her plate and grabbing Lily's shoulders and shaking her.  
"Hestia, calm down!" Exclaimed Lily. "James Potter did not snog me!"  
"Awww, not fair." Said Hestia. "I still say you two would make a cute couple." Lily would normaly have threatened to jinx Hestia if she said that, but this time no threats of being put under the Imperius Curse and made to walk around the school with a pair of underpants on her head were thrown at her. Not even threatened with a Jelly-Legs Jinx, and Hestia noticed this, though she did not say anything.  
"Hestia, could you do me a favour, just the one?" Asked Lily. "I mean, seriously, not a joke?"  
"Depends what it is." Replied Hestia.  
"Could you not make any remarks about James and me for a while, please?" She asked. "Things are a little awkward between us at the minute, and you don't help much when you're saying we'd make a cute couple."  
"Right, I can do that, no problem." Said Hestia, stuffing a piece of toast into her mouth. "Well, I'd better go now, I have to do some N.E.W.T revision in the library."  
"Revision on Saturdays?" Asked Lily. "I revise like crazy during the week, and then I don't even think about my exams at the weekends."  
"That works for you, not me." Said Hestia, getting up from the table. "See you later, Lil."  
"Right, see you, Hest." Replied Lily. She helped herself to some breakfast, and let her mind wander. Soon enough, James Potter came into her thoughts. It was strange because she liked him (Oh, Merlin, `Liking him` doesn't sum it up) yet sometimes, she hated him... 


	4. 4 Lily accepts

The rest of Saturday passed relatively quickly, and as Lily climbed into bed that night, James Potter was still on her mind.

Lily walked down to the Great Hall for breakfast the next morning, which was a Sunday, in high spirits. For some reason, she just felt like today was going to be a good day. In fact, she would have to ask Charity if she had given her some Felix Felicis in her sleep.  
"Morning, Lil." Said Hestia, as she began to walk next to Lily.  
"Morning, Hestia." Said Lily.  
"You're not carrying your book that you usually bring down to breakfast with you." Commented Hestia.  
"No, I didn't feel like bringing a book with me this morning." Replied Lily.  
"Lily, that's all you ever do at breakfast." Said Hestia. "That's what you've been doing nearly every morning for seven years straight."  
"I know, but maybe seven years is enough, don't you think?" Asked Lily. "I've had my nose stuck in books for seven years, and I'm only going to be here for two more terms. I need to actually do some stuff other than study before I leave Hogwarts."  
"Are you quite sure you feel OK, Lil?" Asked Hestia.  
"I'm fine, Hestia." Said lily. "But look at it this way; I've been here for seven years and I still don't completely know my way around the grounds because all I ever do is stay indoors and read. I need to get out and do stuff, or before I know it, it'll be time to leave Hogwarts and then I'll have to live with regrets my whole life long."  
"Right, Lily, I just have to go and talk to Dora Tonks at the Hufflepuff table for a minute, I'll catch you up later." Said Hestia, before dashing off in the direction of the Hufflepuffs. lily looked down the Gryffindor table, and saw James Potter and Sirius Black sitting next to each other. She decided to go sit with them.  
"Hello." Said Lily, as she sat down on the bench on the opposite side of the table from the two Marauders.  
"Hi, Lily." Said Sirius, who looked like he had finished his food, judjing by the empty plate in front of him that was usually full of sausages and beans and bacon and toast.  
"Is at a nue sirt?" Asked James, with his mouth stuffed full of food.  
"Swallow your food and then repeat that, please, I didn't catch a word of it." Said Lily, who helped herself to some cereal. James swallowed the food in one go, and consiquentially choked on it. Sirius gave him a good, hard thump on the back, which seemed to help. "Take a drink of something, James." Said Lily. She looked over, and saw that James' goblet was empty, so she handed him hers. He took a large gulp from it, and then he was fine.  
"Thanks, Lils." Said James, handing Lily back her now half-empty goblet.  
"It's OK." Replied Lily. "Now, what were you saying before you choked on your breakfast?"  
"What? Oh, yea. I asked you if that was a new shirt you're wearing." Said James.  
"This? Yea, my Mum sent me it a few days ago, just as a little surprise." Replied Lily.  
"Erm, I think I'll leave you two alone now." Said Sirius, who stood up. "Catch you later, Prongs."  
"Right, see you, Padfoot." Replied James. Sirius walked off, and James watched him until he was out the door, then turned back to Lily. "I like it." He said.  
"What? My shirt?" Asked Lily.  
"Yea, it looks nice with your eyes." Replied James.  
"Oh, erm, thanks." Said Lily. She blushed, which didn't look good with her red hair.  
"You're cute when you do that." Said James.  
"James, stop, or I'll go even redder." Said Lily, bowing her head to try and hide her red face.  
"You know what I'm thinking?" Asked James. "This is the first time I've called you cute and you haven't threatened me with an Instant Scalping Hex." This only made Lily blush more.  
"Well, it's a good hex." Said Lily, and regretting it as soon as it was out. What a stupid thing to say!  
"You know, Lils, the way you're getting on, you'd think you wanted to go out with me or soemthing." Said James, not one bit expecting what was coming next.  
"OK." Said Lily in a quiet voice, but loud enough for James to hear. He choked on the pumpkin juice he had been drinking from Sirius's forgotten half-empty goblet.  
"You'll what?" Asked James. "You'll go out with me?"  
"Yes." Said Lily, looking up at last and seeing James's incredulous expresion, which didn't help any.  
"You serious?" Asked James.  
"Yes, Potter, I'm serious." Said Lily, torn between the desire to kiss James Potter for being so damn cute and hitting him for being so annoying.  
"Well, next weekend's a Hogsmeade weekend, we could go to the Three Broomsticks or soemthing?" Said James, who had the look on his face of a five-year-old who had just been tolod he can have whatever he wanted from a the sweet-shop.  
"Sounds good." Said Lily, managing a smile.  
"Cool, um, I'll see you round, then, I have to go back to Gryffindor Tower to get my Quidditch gear." Said James, standing up from the table.  
"I've finished, I'll go with you." Said Lily.  
"You've hardly eaten anything." Commented James.  
"I'm not hungry." Replied Lily. "Come on, lets go." They both set off together for Gryffindor Tower. James was over the moon, and Lily was quite amazed at what had just happened, but happy none the less. 


	5. 5 The great Quidditch match

"Morning, Lily." Greeted Charity Burbage as Lily walked into the Great Hall for breakfast. Today was Friday, the Friday after she had agreed to go out with James Potter. And the date was tomorrow. Lily looked around, but James was nowhere to be seen.  
"Hi, Charity." Replied Lily, as she sat herself down at the table, opposite Charity.  
"Quidditch match today, Gryffindor versus Slytherin!" Said Charity excitedly. "If we win, we'll overtake Slytherrin, and we'll be in the lead for the House Cup!"  
"Yea, we'll kick Slytherin's butt." Agreed Lily unenthusiastically. Charity didn't notice the tone of her friends voice, she was too excited about Quidditch.  
"Oh, I don't know, Lily." She said. "Slytherin's got a good team, It'd take a fool to think otherwise."  
"We've got a good team too." Argued Lily, a little more enthusiastically now.  
"Yea, we've got Potter as Seeker, he's a good player." Commented Charity, not noticing the slight blush that came to Lily's face at the mention of James Potter. "And we've got Sirius Black as Keeper, but he's not as good as the last Keeper, you have to admit."  
"Yea, and we've got Benjy Fenwick as a Chaser, he's brilliant!" Said Lily. She was, for once, quite amazed at her own knowledge. Lily wasn't very sporty.  
"Yea, Lil, you're right! We will kick Slytherin's butt!" Said Charity happily, helping herself to more cereal.  
"Um, Charity, have you seen James this morning?" Asked Lily.  
"James Potter? What do you want him for?" Asked Charity in reply. Lily hadn't told anyone that she was going out with James tomorrow. Better to keep it to herself until she knew if it was going to work out with James.  
"Erm, I need to ask him about our, um, Defence Against The Dark Arts homework." Said Lily. Charity was quite gullible, so there was no problem in getting her to believe things.  
"Just about the only class he's any good at." Commented Charity.  
"Yea, but have you seen him today?" Asked Lily again.  
"Nope." Replied Charity. "He's probably off getting ready for the game."  
"Damn Quidditch." Muttered Lily under her breath, not loud enough for Charity-The-Quidditch-Enthusiast to hear.  
"Oh, Lily?" Said Charity. "I have a friend in Ravenclaw, she's in fifth year who needs someone to tutor her through Potions, and I said I'd ask you. Will you do it?"  
"When would I have to see her?" Asked Lily.  
"Saturdays." Replied Charity. "She's on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team, and they practice Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and she's in the Duelling Club, which meets on Thursdays, and she says she always has too much homework on Tuesday nights, and she wants Sundays to do what she wants so Saturday's the only day she can do it."  
"Sorry, Charity, but I can't do it on Saturdays." Said Lily. "Most Saturdays I'm going to have, erm, plans."  
"What plans? All you ever do on Saturday is go to the library and sit outside if it's a nice day." Argued Charity.  
"Look, Charity, I just can't do it, OK?" Said Lily irritably. "If she needs a tutor for Potions, tell her to go ask Severus Snape, he's a genius at Potions."  
"She's Muggle-born, she's scared the Slytherins will call her a M.U.D.B.L.O.O.D." Said Charity, spelling out `Mudblood` in whispers. "And Snape called you one, so don't say he wouldn't."  
"I have to go get something from my dormitory before the game starts, so I'm going to go now." Said Lily firmly, standing up and walking off without another word to her friend. She walked through the corridors in silence, angry at Charity for insulting Snape, though, she wasn't sure why. He had called her a Mudblood, and she hadn't spoken to him since, but it was Severus who had seen her in the park that day seven years ago, and told her that she was a Witch and told her about Hogwarts and magic and Diagon Alley and all sorts of magical creatures. Snape had been her best friend. Now she wasn't sure what he was to her. She was now standing outside the portrait hole to Gryffindor Tower.  
"Password?" Asked the Fat Lady.  
"Devil's Snare." Said Lily absent-midedly. The portrait did not swing open.  
"Are you alright, dear?" Asked the Fat Lady.  
"Yes, I'm fine." Snapped Lily.  
"Manners don't cost a penny." Said the Fat Lady.  
"Sorry, I'm just a bit annoyed at my friend." Said Lily. "I didn't mean to snap at you."  
"That's alright, dear." Said the Fat Lady, smiling. " You always were a nice girl, one of the few students who would stop and have a chat with me every now and again. I'll miss you when you leave at the end of this year."  
"I'll miss everything about this place." Said Lily. "Um, I'm in a bit of a hurry, could I please get in now?"  
"Of course, in you go, dear." Said the Fat Lady, swinging forwards to reveal a doorway. Lily ran inside, but stopped dead when nshe got into the common room. James was sitting on the sofa beside the fire, with a book open in front of him and some bottles of different couloured liquids sitting on the table. He looked up when he saw Lily.  
"What are you doing?" Asked Lily suspiciously.  
"Hello to you too." Said James.  
"What are you doing, Potter?" Asked Lily again.  
"I though you'd given up on calling me Potter since you agreed to go out with me." Said James.  
"Potter, what in the bloody name of Merlin are you doing?" Asked Lily.  
"Goodness, mind your language, Miss Evans." Said James. Lily took a few steps forward so that she was an arms length away from James.  
"I'll ask you once more, James, what the hell are you doing?" Said Lily firmly.  
"Lily, what you don't know won't hurt you." Said James.  
"Thats's it." Said Lily, jumping forward and taking the book from James. She looked at the page he had been reading, and laughed out loud when she read it. "Beautifying potion?" She exclaimed, laughing her head off.  
"Stop it, Lils." Said James, his face going red. "Peter asked me to make it for him, I swear!"  
"Yea, right." Said Lily. "I know you too well, James, you were going to drink that just before we went to Hogsmeade so that I'd fall head over heels for you."  
"Erm..." Said James.  
"I don't go for looks, James, I go for what's on the inside." Said Lily, still laughing. "Why else would I have gone out with Frank Longbottom for nearly a year?" James couldn't stop himself laughing out loud at this.  
"Longbottom's not much of a looker, is he?" Said James.  
"Don't insult Frank, we're still good friends." Said Lily, playfully shoving James.  
"Sorry." Laughed James. Their laughter died down after a minute or so, and then came the awkward silence. None of them had anything to say, so James just stepped forward quite out of the blue and pulled Lily into a hug.  
"You should probably go get ready for the big game." Said Lily into James' shoulder.  
"Yea, I should." Agreed James, letting go of Lily. "I'll see you later, OK?"  
"Meet me in the Three Broomsticks." Called Lily, as James ran off out the portrait hole. She listened to the footsteps going down the corridor, and headed upstairs to her dormitory once they had died away. To her surprise, Hestia was in the dormitory.  
"Hi, Lily." Said Hestia, a cheeky grin on her face.  
"You heard, didn't you?" Asked Lily, internally cursing herself for not checking to see if anyone was listening before she talked to James about their date.  
"You didn't tell me you were going out with James Potter!" Said Hestia.  
"I didn't tell anyone." Said Lily. "Please don't go telling half the school. Please?"  
"Your secret's safe with me, Lil." Replied Hestia. "Now lets go watch your boyfriend win us the game!"  
"He's not, well, we haven't-" Began Lily, but Hestia cut her off.  
"If you're going out with him, he's your bofriend." Said Hestia firmly. Lily just laughed, grabbed her Gryffindor scarf, and ran after Hestia, who had left the dormitory and was probably in the common room by now. She ran down the stairs and found Hestia waiting for her at the portrait hole. They ran out to the pitch together, in hysterical laughter for no apparent reason, as teenage girls just do.

"There you are, the game's about to start!" Said Charity as Lily and Hestia found her sitting in the stands.  
"COME ON GRYFFINDOR!" Yelled Hestia. Some third-years in the row behind had made a banner, and cheered and waved it about as others began to follow Hestia's lead. Soon, everyone was chanting `Gryffindor, Gryffindor, Gryffindor!` all at once, so that Lily's ears were ringing. She looked over at the mass of green and silver banners and scarves and saw Sverus Snape in the second row up, waving his scarf around and cheering along with his friends.  
"Everyone give a big cheer for the Gryffindor team!" Cheered Nymphadora Tonks into the microphone, as she was doing the comentry for the match. "Here they come! Potter, Black, Fenwick, Longbottom and Johnson!"  
"Go Gryffindor!" Screamed Lily, though nobody would have herard her over the screams and yells of the complete Gryffindor house.  
"And here come the Slytherin team!" Said Nymphadora Tonks, though with slightly less enthusiasm. "Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Avery and Carrow!" There was a deafening cry of celebration from the Slytherins. They had a good team, there was no denying it. But, hell, so did Gryffindor!  
"And the Quaffle is relesed, and there goes the Snitch!" Said Nymphadora. "Gryffindor beaters Fenwick and Johnson are off after the Bludgers, and the Slytherin chaser Avery is off after the Quaffle, as is Longbottom of the gryffindor team."  
"We're gonna score!" Screeched Hestia, as the Quaffle was thrown nearer and nearer to the hoop that would give Gryffindor points.  
"Come on, Longbottom!" Lily screamed, though Hestia had a good pair of lungs on her and was undoubtably louder.  
"Slytherin Seeker, Lucius Malfoy is now heading very fast around the pitch, he must see the Snitch! And James Potter of Gryffindor is off in the same direction, come on Potter, get the bloody snitch!" Screamed Nymphadora.  
"Miss Tonks, please keep your undiserable language for when there is not a microphone in front of you." Said McGonnagall, and the microphone just managed to pick it up.  
"Sorry, Professor, got lost in the excitement of the match." Said Nymphadora, quite obviously trying to stop herself from laughing. "Anyway, back to the game. Malfoy and Potter are both chasing something, obviously the Snitch. Meanwhile, the Quaffle is near the hoops, and, wait for it, GRYFFINDOR SCORES!"  
"Why's she so excited that Gryffindor's winning? She's in Hufflepuff." I shouted in Hestia's ear so she could hear me over the deafening roar of Gryffindor celebrations.  
"`Cause Hufflepuff's last in the laugue, they haven't got a hope of winning the cup." Shouted Hestia. "And Ravenclaw's not much more ahead of them, so it's more than likely either gonna be Gryffindor or Slytherin that wins, and everyone hates Slytherin."  
"The Bludger's gonna hit Malfoy!" Screamed Tonks.  
"RESULT!" Cried Hestia, to a disaproving look from McGonnagall, who happened to hear.  
"Merlin, the Bludger's knocked Malfoy off his broom!" Screeched Nymphadora. "Come on, Potter, there's nobody else trying to get it, keep your eye on the ball!"  
"Miss Tonks, you are supposed to be unbiased, that is why you were selected for comentary, because you are in neither of the competing houses!" Said McGonnagall.  
"Sorry, Professor." Said Tonks. "Oh Merlin, Potter's reaching out! He's gonna catch it!"  
"COME ON JAMES!" Screamed Lily, as loud as her lungs could manage. Just then, James reached out just a little to far and fell head-first off his Nimbus 1,000.  
"No!" Cried Hestia and Lily together, both standing up to get a better iew of what was going on.  
"Potter, is he Ok?" Said Tonks into the microphone. The Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw stands were now deathly quiet, yet the Slytherin stands were full of jubilant cries of celebration.  
"I saw him clench his fist before he fell, maybe he caught it?" Whispered Charity, who had brought along a pair of Muggle binoculars.  
"Why gives a damn about the Snitch?" Whispered Lily in reply. "He fell from a good thirteen feet, he could have broken his neck." Then, like a miricale, James tried to stand up. He appeared to have hurt his leg, and had to grab onto Madam Hooch, who had just got to him, so as not to fall over.  
"Oh, thank God!" Exclaimed Hestia. The stadium was full of sighs of relief. Except for the Slytherin supporters, of course.  
"Too bad he didn't catch the Snitch, though." Commented Charity. She looked through her Muggle binoculars, and her mouth dropped at whatever she saw. "He's got something in his hand!" She said.  
"What?" Screamed Lily, grabbing the binoculars off Charity to see for herself. "Good merlin, he has!" Just then, James seemed to realise he was holding something, and looked at whatever was in his hand. Through the binoculars, Lily was a glint of gold. James held it up, and it was the Snitch.  
"Potter caught the Snitch!" Screamed Nymphadora. "GRYFFINDOR WINS!"  
"That was the best catch I've ever seen!" Yelled Hestia. Lily looked down to the pitch, and saw James limping off the pitch, assisted by Madam Hooch.  
"He'll be going to the hospital wing, won't he?" Asked Lily.  
"Yea, probably." Replied Hestia. "Go see him, Lily, he'll be fine. He obviously didn't break any bones if he can still walk, so Madam Pomfrey'll have him mended in the blink of an eye."  
"You're right." Agreed Lily, running off. "I might see you in Hogsmeade later, Hest!" She called over her shoulder. Lily ran the whole way to the hospital wing, where Madam Pomfrey was standing at the door.  
"Hello." She said, as Lily stopped in front of her.  
"Is James Potter in there?" Asked Lily.  
"Yes, dear, but there's no point in visiting him now, he's under a sleeping potion while the mixture that will fix his leg does its job." Said Madam Pomfrey.  
"Please, I was meant to be going into Hogsmeade with him today." Pleaded Lily.  
"Oh, alright, but be quiet." Said Madam Pomfrey. "He's over there." She pointed to the bed that was pushed up against the wall at the far end of the Hospital Wing. Lily hurried over. There was a chair at the end of his bed, so she dragged it over and sat down next to the bed. lily reached out and took James' hand. As if that was some kind of signal, James woke up.  
"Lily?" He said in a quiet voice.  
"James?" Replied Lily. "You OK?"  
"Yea, just a bit boggled." Said James, laughing at himself.  
"How's your leg?" Asked Lily. "Fine, Madam Pomfrey worked her magic on it." Said James, sitting up a little. "I reckon I'd be fine to go to Hogsmeade, if Madam Pomfrey will let me go."  
"James, if we go to Hogsmeade, we won't get peace." Said Lily. "You won us the game, ou're like some hero."  
"Shut up." Said James teasingly. "And I think it's time I let you in on a little Marauder secret."  
"Oh God, do I really want to know?" Asked Lily.  
"Don't worry, it's nothing bad." Said James. "You ever heard of invisibility cloaks?"  
"Of course I have." Replied Lily.  
"Well, I've got one." Said James proudly.  
"Where did you get an invisibility cloak from?" Asked Lily.  
"Oh, that's another story." Said James, laughing. "But my point is, there's this little place in Hogsmeade, Madam Pudifoot's, and there's hardly ever anyone in it. We could go there, me under the cloak, and it would look like you were on your own, so nobody would follow you."  
"As much as I hate to think what you and your friends would do with an invisibility cloak, I have to admit it is coming in usefull now. I like the plan." Said Lily, smiling and squeezing James' hand.  
"Now we just have to convince Madam Pomfrey to let me out of here." Said James. "Hey, Madam Pomfrey?"  
"Yes?" Replied the School's Healer.  
"I feel absoloutely fine now, can I go?" Asked James hopefully.  
"Well, yes, I suppose. If you can walk with no trouble, that is." She said.  
"Sure, my leg's totally good as new." Said James, swinging his legs out from under the covers and shoving his feet into his shoes, which were lying next to the bed. He stood up, and I noticed him wince, but he hid it and Madam Pomfrey didn't see. He took a few steps forward and then looked at Madam Pomfrey expectantly.  
"Alright, Potter, you may go." She said, turning to attend to a small first year boy who had been hit with a stray Engorgement charm, causing his front teeth to grow to an alarming size. They were nearly back to normal now, though he may be left a little buck-toothed.  
"Are you sure you're OK?" Asked Lily as they exited the hospital wing.  
"Yea, just a bit stiff." Replied James. They walked together up to Gryffindor Tower, where they both went up to the boys dormitory to get James' cloak.  
"I've never been up here before." Commented Lily.  
"Yea, the girls can get into the boys' rooms, but we can't get into the girls' rooms? What's up with that?" Said James.  
"The founders of Hogwarts thought girls were more trustworthy than boys." Said Lily. "Now come on, get your cloak and let's go." James delved into his trunk, and pulled out his invisibility cloak and shoved it into the inside pocket of his robes.  
"Ready, Lils?" He asked, just as they reached the portrait hole.  
"Ready, James." Replied Lily. They stepped out into the corridor together, setting out for Hogsmeade. 


	6. 6 The date disaster

"Merlin's baggy pants, it's freezing." Complained Lily, as they cleared Filch, who was checking permission slips.  
"Don't talk, or it'll look weird." Said James, who was under his invisibility cloak.  
"Good point, I'll shut up now." Replied Lily, as they made their way to Madam Pudifoot's, hopefully away from the crowds of Hogwarts kids on their Hogsmeade visits. Thankfully, there seemed to be far fewer children on the Hogsmeade trip than usual. Most of the Gryffindors were probably up in the Common Room, celebrating the amazing win, the Slytherins would be cooped up in their dungeon, moping and sulking due to the end result of the Quidditch, and hell knows what the Ranvenclaws and Hufflepuffs were up to. Actually, Lily knew exactly where one Hufflepuff would be. Tonks. She'd be in McGonnagall's office.  
"Lily?" Asked James from under his cloak.  
"What?" Replied Lily.  
"Madam Pudifoot's is back there, you walked past it." He said. Lily looked up, and realised that she had in fact walked past the little side street that led to Madam Pudifoot's.  
"Oh!" She exclaimed, and hurried back and headed down the alleyway. She reached the door, and looked in through the window. There were only six people in the shop, and none of them were really friends of Lily's, except Frank Longbottom, but he appeared to be a little too busy with Alice to notice anyone else. The pair were leaning over their table, lips locked and holding hands. She turned around, and suddenly James was standing right in front of her, as he had taken off the Cloak. She jumped, as she had just got used to him being invisible.  
"Sorry, did I startle you? Asked James, grinning broadly.  
"No." Said Lily defiantly.  
"Hey, Lils, it's bloody freezing, let's go in." Said James, grabbing Lily's hand and dragging her into the coffee shop. As she looked around, Lily noticed that this was obviously a place for couples. It was small and cosy, and there was a nice fire going to keep the place warm. "What do you want to drink?" Asked James.  
"Oh, um, Pumpkin Juice, please." Said Lily.  
"You don't like Butterbeer?" Asked James.  
"Not particularly." Replied Lily. James looked at her for a moment or so, seeming to see right into Lily's soul.  
"Strange girl." He said after a minute or so, and headed off to buy the drinks. Lily stood awkwardly by herself for a moment, then decided to go and find a table. It wasn't hard, as only three tables were taken. She chose the table in the corner, as it was almost hidden by a dividing wall between the table and the one next to it. She sat herself down, and watched James shift from one foot to the other while the bar lady fetched their drinks. James spotted Lily watching him, and turned around and winked at her, making Lily blush. This didn't do anything to complement her red hair, and Lily sarcastically mouthed the word `git` at James. The bar lady then handed over two glasses, and James payed for them. He carried them over to the table Lily had picked, and set them down before settling himself onto the seat opposite Lily.  
"Thanks, James." Said Lily, sliding her Pumpkin Juice along the table towards her.  
"You're welcome, Lady Lily." Said James, taking a mouthful from his glass of what appeared to be Butterbeer.  
"Erm, what do you want to talk about?" Asked Lily, feeling very awkward.  
"I dunno." Said James. "I noticed your owl hasn't brought you any letters in a couple of weeks, what's up?"  
"You watch to see if I get any mail." Asked Lily, raising her eyebrows.  
"I've SEEN you getting mail, I'm not sure if that's the same as watching." Said James. "And I've SEEN that your owl hasn't come in about three weeks."  
"I've kind of fallen out with my sister." Admitted Lily.  
"Oh, that Petunia girl?" Asked James.  
"Yes, `that Petunia girl`. We've haven't really been that close since I came to Hogwarts, but now she's stopped sending me letters alltogether." Said Lily. It felt good to talk about it to someone other than Charity, who would only bombard Lily with questions about Muggles when she mentioned her family.  
"Well, if she's not going to talk to you, don't bother to talk to her." Said James.  
"You don't understand; she's my sister, for Merlin's sake." Said Lily. "And you're an only-child anyway."  
"Yeah, I'm an only-child." James said. "I guess I'm not really qualified to give advice about sisters, then."  
"No, I guess you're not." Said Lily. "But at least you listened to me, which is more than can be said for one Charity Burbage."  
"Lily, I could spend all day just listening to you." Said James. Lily laughed awkwardly, and James took another mouthful of Butterbeer.  
"How can you drink that stuff?" Asked Lily.  
"You pour some into your mouth, right? Then you swallow it." Said James.  
"Oh, ha ha, very funny." Said Lily. "I mean, how can you like it? It's disgusting."  
"When's the last time you had any?" Asked James.  
"First year, and it made me throw up." Said Lily.  
"Here, try it." Said James, sliding his glass towards Lily.  
"I'll pass." She said.  
"Go on, you might like it now." Said James. Lily picked up the glass, and took a sip. She gagged, and handed the glass back to James.  
"Ugh, still as horrid as ever." Said Lily. James was now quietly laughing at her. She joined in after a few seconds, and the two laughed quietly together for a few minutes before they both stopped. When they did, Lily decided to ask James something she had been meaning to ask him for a long time, a couple of years even.  
"James, can I ask you something?" Asked Lily.  
"Anything." Replied James.  
"Why have you never given up on me?" Asked Lily. "I turned you down again and again, and then I started dating Frank, and then even when we broke up, I still kept on turning you down."  
"I never gave up on you, Lils, because I love you." Said James, looking deep into Lily's eyes.  
"I always used to hate it when you called me that." Said Lily quietly.  
"But now you don't." Said James.  
"No, I think I like it, actually." Admitted Lily, smiling sheepishly. James rached accross, and picked up Lily's hand that was resting on the table next to her glass, and held it in his own.  
"Lily Evans, this has possibly been the best day of my life." Said James.  
"Why, because you won the game for Gryfffindor?" Asked Lily.  
"No. This is the best day ever because you're sitting here with me." Said James.  
"James, how many times have you used that line with your girlfriend?" Asked Lily jokingly.  
"More than a few." Admitted James. "But I've never meant it before."  
"But you do now?" Asked Lily.  
"I do." Replied James.  
"You sound like you're saying your wedding vows." Said Lily.  
"Who knows? Maybe some day we will get married." Said James.  
"Woah, take it back a step or ten, Potter, we're on our first date, don't talk about marriage." Said Lily.  
"Why not, I've loved you for six years." Said James, squeezing Lily's hand.  
"And I've dispised you for six years." Said Lily.  
"Ouch, that hurt." Said James, resting his other hand where his heart was in his chest.  
"And that's why I don't hate you now." Said Lily. "You've shown that you actually have a heart."  
"Aww, you don't hate me, that's really touching, Lily." Said James jokingly.  
"No, I don't hate you, James." Said Lily. "Actually, I, I quite like you." She blushed as she said this. Lily had never really been very good at expressing her feelings.  
"Thanks, Lils." Said James softly. He used his free hand to brush a strand of red hair out of Lily's face, and tuck it behind her ear. "You look cute when you blush." He said.  
"No I don't." Said Lily, blushing even more.  
"You always look cute, Lils. To me, anyway." Said James. He leaned a little closer to Lily accross the table. Inside, Lily was screaming `Oh my God, he's gonna kiss me!`. She wanted to kiss him back; after all, he was sort of her boyfriend now. But at the same time, she was really nervous. Lily closed her eyes for a second to clear her head of any worries, and leaned a little closer. James closed his eyes, tilted his head a little to the right, and puckered his lips a little. Lily then had some strange feeling inside her, and before she knew it, she had thrown up all over James' shirt.  
"Oh no!" Exclaimed Lily, covering her mouth with her hand in shock. "It was the Butterbeer!"  
"Erm." Said James, not quite knowing what to do with himself.  
"James, I'm so sorry!" Said Lily pleadingly, though tears of embarrasment were in her eyes. "I'm so sorry." The tears were now flowing openly.  
"Lils, it's fine." Said James, though that did nothing to help. Lily stood up from the table, and ran out of the shop, crying. "Lily!" James called after her, but she didn't look back. James picked up his Cloak, threw it over himself, and just caught the red hair dissapearing out the door. Invisible, he ran after her, out into the cold afternoon. He looked around and heard footsteps and distant sobbing coming from down a nearby alleyway. He headed towards it, and glanced around the corner. Lily was sitting on the doorstep to an un-lived in house, her knees hunched up to her chest, crying openly. James walked quietly down the alleyway, and sat himself down next to Lily on the doorstep. She didn't notice him, as he was still invisible. James pulled off his Cloak, and left it down beside him.  
"James, I'm so sorry." Said Lily between sobs.  
"Lils, honestly, it's fine." Said James softly, taking Lily's hand. "I guess it was my fault for making you drink that Butterbeer."  
"No, don't try to balme yourself." Said Lily.  
"Lily, look at me." Said James, pulling Lily to her feet. She stood up, but hung her head. James put his hands on either side of Lily's face, and tilted her head up. "It's OK. I really don't care. In fact, that was sort of cute." Said James. Lily laughed through her tears.  
"I throw up over your shirt, and you say it's cute?" She asked disbelievingly. "And you call me strange?" Now, it was James' turn to laugh.  
"Lily, I could never be mad at you." Said James. "And I hear you can perform a mean cleaning charm, so no harm donw, eh?"  
"You want me to clean your shirt for you?" Asked Lily.  
"OK." Said James. "You got your wand with you?"  
"Didn't McGonnagall tell us not to go into Hogsmeade without our wands? These aren't good times, who knows what the Daeth Eaters would or wouldn't do." Said Lily, pulling her wand out of her shoulder-bag.  
"Good point." Agreed James. "Here." He said, and he pulled off his vomit-stained shirt. This took Lily quite by surprise.  
"Um, James?" She said.  
"What?" He asked.  
"It's bloody freezing outside, and you just take your shirt off?" She asked.  
"Well, you're going to clean it for me, aren't you?" He asked.  
"You really need to stop calling me strange." Said Lily, taking the stained shirt from James, and spreading it out on the doorstep. "Scourgify!" She exclaimed, and the shirt instantly cleaned itself.  
"Thatks, Lils." Said James.  
"Wait, it'll be wet after it was on the ground." Said Lily. "Hold it up, and I'll dry it for you."  
"OK." Said James, and he held out the shirt in front of him, holding it by the sleeves. Lily pointed her wand at the shirt.  
"Ventus." She said, and a gust of hot air came from the tip of her wand. It reminded James of a hairdryer. After a minute or so, the shirt was near enough dry, and James slipped it back over his head, and pushed his arms through the arm-holes.  
"Lets go back to Gryffindor Tower, it's too cold to be out." Said James.  
"Agreed." Replied Lily, and they both set off towards the castle. After a few minutes, James took hold of Lily's hand. They walked back to the castle, hand in hand. 


	7. 7 The date's conclusion

As Lily and James got nearer and nearer to Hogwarts, the events of the day seemed to become almost funny. At one point, Lily simply burst out laughing.  
"What's funny?" Asked James.  
"It seems a bit funny now, doesn't it?" Asked Lily. "The whole thing?"  
"Yeah, I guess it does." Said James, and he too joined in laughing. As they were about to go into the castle, Lily stopped and pulled James aside.  
"The common room's going to be really crowded." She said.  
"Yeah, celebrating the Quidditch win." Agreed James.  
"And if we're still going to keep this secret for a while, which I really think we should, then we can't be sitting next to each other and spend the whole time talking to one another." Said Lily.  
"Yeah, I guess you're right." Said James.  
"So this is sort of the end of our date." Said Lily.  
"Or not." Said James. "I've got a plan."  
"What's your genius plan?" Asked Lily, just a hint of skepticism in her voice.  
"I get my Cloak, right? Then we both go up to the boys' dormitories." Said James. "It's only, what, five O'Clock. Nobody will be up there." Lily thought that over for a while.  
"But what if someone IS up there?" She asked.  
"Then we'll try plan B." Replied James.  
"Which is?" Asked Lily, a hint of worry in her voice.  
"Honestly, Lils, you need to start trusting me a little more." Said James. "And plan B is this; we go find an unused classroom."  
"Why?" Asked Lily.  
"To be alone." Said James. "And if you don't like that plan, there's always plan C; we tell everyone we're together and then we won't have to worry about being in private."  
"I like the sound of plan B a LOT better than C, but A would be ideal." Said Lily.  
"OK, to my dorm it is then." Said James. "Here." He said, pulling out his cloak, and wrapping it around his shoulders, and holding out the other corner for Lily to put around her own shoulders.  
"Why do I need to be under the cloak?" Asked Lily.  
"Won't it look suspicious if you go up the boys' dorm and don't come down for like an hour?" Replied James.  
"I guess so." Said Lily, and took the fabric of the Cloak and ducked under it. It was quite clear now that the Cloak was only made for one person, because when Lily looked down their legs were nearly visible up to their knees.  
"Ah." Said James.  
"Hmm." Agreed Lily. "Got a soloution to this one, Mr Genius?" Asked Lily. James didn't speak for a few seconds, then an idea seemed to form in his mind.  
"Yes, actually, I do!" He exclaimed triumphantly. "Jump on my back, then it would cover us!" Lily stared at him for a moment, not sure if he was serious or not. Then, it occured to her, he was deadly serious.  
"OK, but if I fall off, you're dead, understand?" She said.  
"Understood, Miss Evans." Replied James, pulling the cloak off and setting it on a low wall next to them. He turned his back to Lily. "Jump on." Lily grabbed James' shoulders, and jumped up and twisted her legs around his waist. James stepped forwards, and almost fell over. Lily took in a sharp intake of breath, and wrapped her arms around James' neck to stop herself from falling.  
"James Potter, remember what we said about falling over?" Asked Lily.  
"Sorry, Lils." He replied. He regained his balance, and grabbed the cloak. He threw it over himself, and, thankfully, it just about touched the ground. "Told you; stroke of genius."  
"Don't go getting too cocky, Potter." Warned Lily jokingly.  
"I thought you'd stopped calling me Potter all the time. That's your nickname for me when you're angry with me." Said James.  
"Well, the nickname for when I'm angry might just have turned into a nickname for when I'm not, like you calling me Lils." Said Lily.  
"Still, I have a name." Said James.  
"Yes, I know, JAMES. Happy?" Asked Lily sarcastically. "Now are we going inside or not?"  
"Right you are." Replied James, heading inside. They had to walk in silence up the Gryffindor tower, as a few students were milling through the corridors, plenty of people either James or Lily knew well. It was incredibly for James to climb the moving staircases with another fully grown human on his back, but he managed it. When they got to the Portrait Hole, James stepped aside.  
"Why aren't we going inside?" Asked Lily.  
"Gotta wait until someone else who isn't invisible cones along, and we'll slip inside with them." Replied James. Lily sighed, and thought not for the first time about how ridiculous her current situation was; she was in what was probably a considerably ungraceful position, hanging on like grim death to James' shoulders, and they were invisible. Lily looked around, and, like salvation walking towards her, Frank and Alice were coming up the nearby staircase.  
"Please, God, let them be going into the Common Room." Whispered Lily, more to herself than to James, though he responded with a quiet chuckle. Frank pulled Alice aside when they got to the Portrait Hole, and whispered something to her. Alice giggled, and the two then began kissing. Lily rolled her eyes. She was sure Frank would kill her is he knew she was watching his intimate moment with Alice, which, as far as he knew, was totally private. At least Frank and Alice's relationship was out in the open, it didn't really matter if someone saw them.  
"Oi, Longbottom, if you're gonna mess Alice around, get a room will you?" Came a familiar voice coming from the staircase. Sirius appeared, and Frank went red, as did Alice. Sirius, in true Marauder style, was grinning ear to ear.  
"Come on, Frank, lets go to the library, get that Charms homework done, yeah?" Said Alice, obviously just wanting to get away from the current, awkward, situation.  
"Good idea, Alice." Said Frank, his voice showing just how relieved he was as well. They headed off down the stairs together, and Sirius laughed openly to himself.  
"Lily, I know we agreed to keep this a secret, but I told Sirius, please don't be mad." Whispered James. Lily sighed. Hestia knew, so she supposed they were even.  
"OK, James, that's fine." Whispered Lily.  
"Ok, then." Whispered James. "Hey, Padfoot!" Said James, no longer whispering. Sirius looked around in confusion.  
"Prongs? Where are you mate?" Asked Sirius.  
"Under my Cloak." Said James.  
"Lily with you?" He asked.  
"Hi, Sirius." Said Lily somewhat sheepishly.  
"You two been in Hogsmeade?" Asked Sirius, a cheeky grin all over his face.  
"Yeah, you couldn't do us a favour, could you, mate? Open the Portrait Hole for us, eh?" Asked James.  
"No prob, Prongs." Replied Sirius. He stepped forwards.  
"Devil's Snare." He said. The Fat Lady had considerately `fallen asleep` when Alice and Frank had arived. She didn't mind giving the Gryffindors privacy if they need it. She `woke up` when she heard the password, and swung open. Sirius stepped inside, and James followed, stooping low to make sure I didn't hit my head on the doorframe.  
"Thank you." I whispered to the Fat Lady as James walked past.  
"No problem, dear." She whispered back, smiling at the general area she supposed I must be in. Inside, there was a party going on in the Common Room, Gryffindor banners hung everywhere, all the students wearing something that was either red or gold.  
"Thanks, mate." Whispered James to Sirius, who nodded, and headed off into the crowd of Gryffindors. James made his way carefully through the crowd, careful not to nudge anyone by accident, and walked up the steps to the dormitories. He turned left, and entered the boys' dorm. It was empty. He stopped in the middle of the floor, and took of the Cloak. He let go of Lily's legs, which he had been holding onto to make sure she didn't fall. "You alright, Lils?" Asked James.  
"Yeah. I suppose." Replied Lily, jumping down off James' back and wobbling precariously when she landed. James grabbed her arms to steady her. "Thanks." She said.  
"No problem." Replied James. Lily looked around. She felt more than a little awkward. James took her hand, and led her over to the bed next to the window, and sat down on it. Lily sat down next to him, and James put his arm around her shoulders.  
"Thanks." Said Lily.  
"For what?" Asked James.  
"For everything; for taking me to Hogsmeade, for not being mad when I threw up over your shirt, for putting up with the Cloak all day. Just, thanks." Said Lily.  
"You're welcome, Lils." Said James, taking Lily's hand. He stood up then, and pulled Lily up too. He took both her hands in both of his, and looked deep into her eyes. "And you shouldn't be the one saying thank you." He said, before leaning in and kissing Lily. He decided not to try to take it too far. Just a simple kiss on the lips, no more than a few seconds long. When he pulled away, Lily just stared at him with a slightly surprised expression on her face. After a moment, Lily blinked and something seemed to click in her brain. She looked anxiously, quickly, around the room, then ran off. Out of the boys' dorm, up into the safety of the girls'. Hestia was there.  
"T'sup, Lily?" She asked.  
"Oh, just the normal." Replied Lily, flopping down onto her bed. She buried her face in the pillow.  
"You been with Potter?" asked Hestia.  
"Yeah." Replied Lily. It came out slightly muffled, due to the pillow.  
"Where were you?" Asked Hestia.  
"Boys' dorm." Replied Lily. Hestia raised her eyebrows.  
"What happened up there?" She asked, not pushy, but wanting to know.  
"Oh, you know. We chatted, talked about the date." Said Lily. "And he kissed me."  
"HE DID WHAT?" Exclaimed Hestia.  
"Shush!" Exclaimed Lily, sitting bolt upright.  
"Sorry!" Said Hestia. "But, seriously, like, oh my God!"  
"Hest, please" Said Lily in a pleading tone.  
"Lily, this is big!" Said Hestia excitedly.  
"You're to tell NOBODY." said Lily.  
"Yeah, OK, whatever!" Agreed Hestia. The girl was deep in hyper mode.  
"Hestia, I know you're all hypered-up now, but can you please take it down a notch? I want to sleep." Said Lily wearily.  
"It's only six. That's early, even by your standards." Said Hestia.  
"I know, but I'm tired." Said Lily.  
"Suit youself, Evans, I'm going downstairs. If they've still got butterbeer, I'm claiming my share of it." Said Hestia, not noticing Lily's shudder at the mention of the dreaded drink.  
"Have fun." Said Lily into her pillow as she heard Hedtia leave the room. Lily turned over after a while, and stared at the ceiling. A million thoughts were racing through her head. One half of her wished she had stayed with James after he had kissed her, the other half was glad she had left. Soon enough, she found herself wishing that she was with James again. "Oh, to hell with this." She said to herself, throwing her legs off the bed and stading up. She looked in the mirror, and made sure her hair was OK before she walked to the door and looked out onto the common room. Nobody was looking her direction. She glanced back at her own dorm before running down the steps, and up the opposite ones, into the boys' dormitory. She took a deep breath, before she looked around the corner. James was sitting on his bed with his head in his hands, elbows propped up on his knees. She knocked the open door, and James looked up.  
"Lily!" He exclaimed disbelievingly.  
"Hey James." Replied Lily awkwardly, stepping into the room. She was standing a metre or so away from James now.  
"You've come to tell me you don't want me to be your boyfriend anymore, haven't you?" Asked James.  
"What? No!" Said Lily.  
"So, you DO want me to be your boyfriend?" Asked James. Lily stepped forward, so she was right in front of him.  
"Yes." She said Simply.  
"I thought I'd blown it." Said James, smiling almost shyly.  
"I thought I'D blown it." Said Lily. "I'm sorry I ran off."  
"It's Ok." Replied James.  
"It's just, well, I wasn't expecting it, and, OK, I'm going to confess something to you that very few people know." Said Lily. "That was my first kiss."  
"What? You've never snogged anyone before, and you're in seventh year?" Asked James, a cheeky smile spreading across his face.  
"Oh, shut up." Said Lily, though she was smiling at how broadly he was grinning.  
"I thought you made out with Longbottom when you were going out with him?" Asked James.  
"Well, not really. He kissed me on the cheek once." Said Lily, blushing.  
"Yeah, that doesn't count, does it?" Replied James.  
"No, it doesn't." Agreed Lily. "That wasn't your first, was it?" She asked, already knowing the answer; no.  
"I'm afraid not, Lily. I kissed a girl in third year." Said James.  
"Geesch." Commented Lily. "Who was it?" James paused for a moment before he answered.  
"Alice." He said, going slightly red at the mention of it.  
"Frank's girlfriend?" Asked Lily. "I wouldn't have thought she was your type, James."  
"She's not. Well, not now anyway. She had a thing for me back then, so, I kind of thought, you know, what the hell?" Said James.  
"Yeah." Said Lily. There was an awkward silence then.  
"I won't do it again, promise." Said James after a while, breaking the silence.  
"What, try to kiss me?" Asked Lily.  
"Yeah." Said James, slightly awkwardly. "I won't do it again."  
"The only reason I ran off was because I...well, I was scared, to tell the truth." Said Lily.  
"That bad at it, am I?" Asked James jokngly.  
"No, you're not bad at it." Said Lily. She blushed when she sounded how it sounded coming out.  
"Well then." Said James.  
"I-I didn't mean - It wasn't meant to sound- Oh no..." Said Lily. James smiled, and picked up her hand.  
"You're adorable when you do that. You know, get all lost for words." Said James.  
"Oh, um, thanks." Said Lily shyly. She felt an inexplicable urge to cry, but she fought it back. Soon, however, she realised that it was becoming inevitable that a few y=tears were going to come, so she stepped forwards and wrapped her arms around James' waist, and hid her face in his neck so he wouldn't see. James held her close.  
"Your hair smells nice." Said James softly. Lily tried to give him a gentle laugh then, but a sob came out instead. "Are you crying, Lils?" Asked James.  
"No." Said Lily, but her voice betrayed her. James pulled away from her, but stood only a centimetre or so away, and took her face in his hands then.  
"Why are you crying?" He asked softly.  
"I, I just, you, I...Oh..." Said Lily, as fresh tears spilled down her cheeks. James pulled her close to him again, and put his arms around Lily as she cried into his shoulder. After a few seconds, Lily lifted her head, and sniffed loudly.  
"Lils, you know what I said earlier? Stuff it." Said James. He put his hand on Lily's cheek, and gently pulled her face up to his and kissed her. This time, Lily didn't just stand there, immobilised, she put her hands on James' shoulders and kissed him back. James moved his hand from Lily's cheek to her long red hair, and rested the other one on her waist. Lily didn't pull away, so they stayed caught up in their kiss for a rasonably long time. Finally, Lily pulled away.  
"That was nice." She said quietly.  
"understatement." Said James. A strand of red hair had fallen over Lily's face, and it had gotten stuck there because her face was wet from tears. James carefully tucked the strand of hair behind Lily's ear.  
"James, can you promise me something?" Asked Lily.  
"Anything." Replied James.  
"Don't go telling everyone we kissed like that, OK?" She said. "I suppose you can tell Sirius, he's like your brother, but nobody else."  
"OK, Babe." Replied James.  
"And I'm fine with Lils, but not Babe." Said Lily.  
"OK, Lils." Replied James. Lily sighed happily then, and gave James a quick hug. When she let go of him, James sat down on his bed, and motioned for Lily to sit down next to him. She sat down, and James held her hand.  
"What time is it?" Asked Lily. James looked at his watch.  
"Half past seven." He said.  
"I'm hungry." Said Lily.  
"Want to go downstairs and get something to eat? I won't go down with you, if you don't want." Said James.  
"Come, just don't be holding my hand or hugging me or anything, I still want us to keep this to ourselfves for a while." Said Lily. "Well, technically it's ourselves and Sirius and Hestia."  
"She knows?" Asked James.  
"She was in the common room when we were talking before the game." Said Lily.  
"Ah." Replied James.  
"Yeah. Let's go, I'm starving." Said Lily. Lily headed out first, unseen by the dwindling crowd of Gryffindors, followed by James. Lily got herslef some pumpkin pie, and even managed to get the sofa next to the fire. She watched James walking about, drinking Butterbeer, chatting to Remus, being his usual, manic self with Sirius. At one point, Sirius clapped James on the back in a congratulatory manner; Lily supposed James had told him about their kiss. At eight O'Clock, Lily got up and headed over to where Sirius and James were standing. Sirius knew, so it didn't matter, really. "James?"  
"Yeah, Lils?" He responded.  
"I'm going to bed, I'm exhausted." Said Lily. "I'll see you tomorrow."  
"OK, sleep tight, Lil." Said James. Lily turned to Sirius.  
"Night, Sirius." She said.  
"Farewell, Miss Evans." Replied Sirius. Lily smiled at him. Sirius was her friend, he had always been. Actually, Lily had always been friends with all the Marauders, bar Peter; she didn't like him much. Remus was a good friend, not as crazy as the others. Sirius was good if you wanted a laugh. James. Well, James was something else. Lily turned, and headed upstairs, she glanced back before she went into her dorm, and saw James watching her go, smiling at her. She gave him a smile back, before she went into ehr dormitory. 


End file.
